Dustin Pedroia
Dustin Luis Pedroia (born August 17, 1983 in Woodland, California) is a Major League Baseball player for the Boston Red Sox, where he is currently the starting second baseman. He also played college baseball at Arizona State University. He is listed by Major League Baseball and the Boston Red Sox at 5'9 and 180 lbs. He is a two-time all-star, was the 2007 American League Rookie of the Year, won a gold glove and silver slugger award at second base in 2008, and was the 2008 American League Most Valuable Player. Early Baseball Career High School Pedroia attended Woodland High School in Woodland, California, where he was coached in by Rob Rinaldi. College In college he played at Arizona State University, with fellow middle infielder Ian Kinsler. In three years, he never hit below .347. Kinsler took Pedroia's shortstop position moving Pedroia to second, and then Pedroia took it back as Kinsler moved to second. In the end, Kinsler transferred to University of Missouri. Minors In two years in the minors (2004–06), he batted .308 while playing second base and shortstop. Major Leagues Pedroia made his major league debut and collected his first major league hit on August 22, 2006 against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Pedroia collected his first major league home run on September 9, 2006 against Kansas City Royals' pitcher Luke Hudson. He wore number 64 until the beginning of the 2007 season, when he switched to 15. 2007 Season Pedroia became the regular second baseman for the Boston Red Sox in 2007. He has been known to be solid defensively (six errors and .990 fielding percentage in 2007). Pedroia's track record throughout his college and minor league career suggests continued success in the major leagues. However, early in the season, his batting average had fallen as low as .172. Such an average along with the great hitting of teammate Alex Cora (who even batted above .400 at a point), had left Pedroia in a platoon role early in this season. However, Pedroia picked up his batting average later in the season. On May 1, his average was at a season-low .172, but Pedroia had raised his average to .322 by June 18, aided by a 13-game hitting streak and a five-hit game against the San Francisco Giants on June 15, 2007. Due to his production, he was named American League Player of the Week for May 28-June 3, and American League Rookie of the Month for May.The Official Site of Major League Baseball: News: Players of the Month His most notable play of the season, though, may be his catch in the seventh inning to preserve fellow rookie Clay Buchholz's September 1, 2007 no-hitter.2B Pedroia makes the play that made the no-hitter possible. As a result of the success of his 2007 season, Pedroia has made it public knowledge that he would like to be referred to as "Ped-Rock". Pedroia was selected to the 2007 Topps Major League Rookie All-Star Team. The selection was the result of the 49th annual Topps balloting of Major League managers."Topps announces the 49th annual Topps Major League Rookie All-Star Team," KansasCity.Royals.mlb.com, 11/26/07, accessed 11/26/07 He also led the Red Sox to the American League pennant in 2007 with a 5 RBI performance in Game 7 versus the Cleveland Indians, delivering the Sox to their second World Series appearance in four years. On Wednesday, October 24, 2007, Dustin Pedroia made history in game one of the 2007 World Series championship against the Colorado Rockies by becoming only the second player (and the first rookie) to lead off the Series with a home run, sending Jeff Francis' second offering over the Green Monster in left. The only other player to lead off a World Series with a home run was Baltimore's Don Buford against Tom Seaver and the 1969 New York Mets. 2007 Playoffs Dustin Pedroia entered the 2007 American League Divisional Series batting .317 with 8 home runs and 50 RBI in 139 games with the Red Sox. During the ALDS Pedroia struggled only getting 2 hits in 3 games against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Though Pedroia struggled at the lead off spot for the Red Sox, Boston cruised past the Angels 3 games to 0 to advance to the ALCS where they met the Cleveland Indians. In the ALCS Pedroia heated up, batting .345 and saving his only home run and 5 RBI of the series in Game 7. Pedroia in the bottom of the 7th inning hit a 2-run homer into the Green Monster seats, then came up to bat in the bottom of the 8th where he hit a 3-run double to help the Red Sox secure the series and a spot in the 2007 World Series. Entering the 2007 World Series against the Colorado Rockies, Dustin Pedroia was one of two rookies starting for the American League Champion Red Sox. Pedroia was accompanied by rookie center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury. These two rookies were the jump start behind the Red Sox offense. Pedroia only saw one pitch in his first World Series at-bat before he took Rockie ace, Jeff Francis' pitch over the Green Monster. After taking the first two games of the World Series the Red Sox entered Game 3 making history by having two rookies bat first and second in the line-up. Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia combined for 7 hits, 3 runs, and drove in 4 more to help the Sox take the first 3 games of the Series. The Red Sox won Game 4 and swept the Colorado Rockies to win its seventh World Series title. Dustin Pedroia ended up batting .278 with 5 hits, 1 home run with 4 runs batted in. (Note: Pedroia played the entire postseason with a broken bone in his left hand). On November 12, 2007 Dustin Pedroia was named the AL rookie of the year. Injuries Pedroia played the final two months of the 2007 season with a cracked hamate bone in his left hand, The Boston Herald reported on Nov. 10. Pedroia told the newspaper that he didn't know when the injury occurred, only that an MRI and bone scan on Sept. 10 revealed the break. He had surgery on the hand on Nov. 6 and virtually no one who wasn't affiliated with the Red Sox had prior knowledge of the injury. 2008 During the 2008 season, Red Sox manager Terry Francona noted that Pedroia, like Mike Lowell and Alex Cora, was willing to play catcher in emergencies. Pedroia ended the season with a .326 average with 17 home runs, 83 RBIs, and 20 stolen bases. He led MLB in hits (tied with Ichiro Suzuki at 213) and doubles (54), while leading the AL in runs scored (118), making him the first player to lead all three of those categories in the same season since Cal Ripken in 1983. Pedroia came in second in the AL in batting average (.326) behind Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer (.328), fourth in the AL in total bases (322), and seventh in the AL in extra-base hits (73). His 20 stolen bases in 21 attempts helped Pedroia lead MLB in stolen base percentage (.952). With only 6 errors in 773 plays at second base, Pedroia was second in the AL in fielding percentage by a second baseman (.992), behind Mark Ellis (.993, OAK), who had almost 200 fewer total chances. After the season, Pedroia won the 2008 American League Most Valuable Player award, in addition to the AL Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards at second base. 2008 Playoffs Pedroia was hitless through the first three games of the 2008 ALDS. His sole hit was an RBI double that drove in Jason Varitek in the 5th inning of game 4. He batted 2nd in all 5 games in the series, behind Jacoby Ellsbury. Pedroia made one of the best defensive plays of the series with a diving throw to first base to retire Vladimir Guerrero in the third inning of game 4. The Red Sox went on to win in dramatic fashion in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 5 again knocking the Angels out of the playoffs. The Angels contained Pedroia in the Division Series, but in the ALCS against the Tampa Bay Rays Pedroia was red hot. In 26 trips to the plate in the LCS Pedroia collected 9 hits including three home runs and a double. However, his impressive line that included a .346 batting average and .731 slugging percentage wasn't enough to propel the Red Sox into the World Series as the rest of the team struggled to a .234 batting average against the impressive Tampa pitching staff. 2009 Pedroia was named the starting second baseman for Team USA in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. He played in Round One of the tournament, but he felt a sharp pain in his leg before the first game of the second round, against Puerto Rico. He was considering playing through the discomfort, but Red Sox and Team USA teammate Kevin Youkilis convinced him to consult a doctor. Pedroia flew back to the Red Sox spring training complex in Ft. Myers, Florida, and was replaced on the WBC roster by Baltimore Orioles' second baseman Brian Roberts. After meeting with Red Sox team doctor Thomas Gill, it was determined that Pedroia had a strained abdominal muscle, not the strained oblique the team had initially feared. This should allow Pedroia to be ready to return before opening day. Statistics Career statistics }} Awards and Distinctions *2004 Golden Spikes Award Finalist *2004 First-Team Baseball America and USA Today All-American *2003 Pac-10 Co-Player of the Year *2003 Pac-10 Player of Forever *2003 NCAA Defensive Player of the Year *Red Sox ML Base Runner of the Month (April 2005) *Red Sox Minor League "Quality Plate Appearances" Award (June 2005) *2005 Post-Season Eastern League All-Star *2005 Red Sox Minor League Offensive Player of the Year *2005 Minor League News MLN FAB50 Baseball 2005 - No. 45 *2006 Minor League News MLN FAB50 Baseball 2006 - No. 23 *2007 American League Rookie of the Month-May *2007 American League Player of the Week (May 28-June 3) *2007 Players Choice American League Outstanding Rookie *2007 World Series Champion (Boston Red Sox) *2007 American League Rookie of the Year *2008 Gold Glove Award- Second Base *2008 Silver Slugger Award- Second Base Personal life Pedroia married Kelli Hatley on November 11, 2006.The Courier News :: Keepsakes Hatley is a 2005 Arizona State University graduate. She is also a melanoma survivor, and advocates for safe sun care with the awareness program "Play Smart When It Comes To The Sun." References External links *Minor League Splits and Situational Stats *No. 45 - MLN FAB50 Baseball 2005 - Minor League News - Situational Stats *No. 23 - MLN FAB50 Baseball 2006 - Minor League News Category:1983 births Category:Baseball Rookies of the Year Category:Living people Category:Major league players from California Category:Major League Baseball second basemen Category:Pawtucket Red Sox players Category:Boston Red Sox players Category:2007 Boston Red Sox World Series Championship Team Category:Arizona State Sun Devils players Category:2007 American League All-Stars Category:2008 American League All-Stars Category:Second Basemen Category:Shortstops Category:Players Category:2009 American League All-Stars